Sunflowers 

Dan Graziano’s “Sunflowers” is an intimate oil painting on board. Here, traditional materials take on a life of their own. Graziano uses thick brushstrokes, layering the paint to capture the textures of the petals and leaves. The rich impasto technique, with its visible marks, gives the artwork a tactile quality. The sunflowers practically burst from the surface, their vibrant yellows contrasting with the dark, moody background. There is a clear sense of immediacy. You can almost feel the artist at work, building up the image layer by layer. The choice of such an unpretentious, everyday subject challenges traditional hierarchies in art. Graziano elevates the ordinary to the extraordinary through his careful attention to material and process. It shows how much can be achieved by engaging directly with the world around us, and the importance of materiality in understanding its cultural significance.